Tuesday, August 11, 2015

In a media environment where affordable housing often takes
a back seat to other pressing issues, it’s gratifying to see coverage
of housing segregation in a national outlet like the New York Times. But
it’s clear that while its news reporting on housing can be excellent, the Times
editorial board has some
way to go before it truly understands the challenges and opportunities in
affordable housing development today. It’s incumbent on the housing community
to educate the media in all parts of the country, so that the true affordable
housing story can be accurately told.

In his recent online opinion column, Thomas B. Edsall writes
about longstanding issues regarding housing mobility. While he is correct
that place has an indelible influence on the life trajectories of all people,
rich, poor and in the middle, he blames something he calls the “poverty housing
industry” for the disparities experienced by people with low incomes and people
of color. Edsall’s views on this matter are simply out of step with the
realities on the ground. We need both mobility strategies and investment in
struggling neighborhoods to achieve housing opportunity for all.

We can’t abandon
struggling neighborhoods
The concentration of people with low incomes in distressed neighborhoods is
largely the result of more than a century of federal, state and local housing,
transportation and employment policies (just to name a few). As Sunday’s
article on housing segregation in Ferguson, Mo., demonstrates, a Housing Choice
Voucher isn’t going to help you move out of a distressed neighborhood if it
won’t cover the rent in a higher-opportunity place, or if landlords in those
places refuse to rent to voucher holders. On the other side, land is costly in
more desirable neighborhoods, which puts affordable housing developers in the
position of building fewer homes, and helping fewer people, when they build in
higher-opportunity communities.

Moving every single American to a “good” ZIP code simply
isn’t feasible.It wouldn’t be just to uproot entire
communities, and even if we tried, the necessary financial capital and
political and neighborhood good will would be in short supply. So what happens
to the families left behind? Abandoning those neighborhoods, those people, is
not an option. To end housing segregation and ensure all people have access to
opportunity, we need a multifaceted approach: creating opportunities to move to
higher-opportunity neighborhoods, and revitalizing neighborhoods in need. That’s
why so many nonprofit housing efforts across the country—like those we honored at this
year’s Gala—focus on comprehensive community development with housing at
the center of success. Good schools, safe neighborhoods, access to health care
and to job opportunities anchored by housing people with low incomes can afford
are the work of the nonprofit housing community, and it’s work we need more of.

Market forces drive
affordable housing development
You wouldn’t know it from Edsall’s focus on large nonprofit developers, but
more than two-thirds of subsidized housing development is done by for-profits. In
fact, the ability for private developers to turn a profit on affordable housing
development is a key part of the success of the Low Income Housing Tax Credit,
a public-private partnership that has created nearly 3 million affordable
rental homes. Of course, that one program is not enough to meet the entirety of
the need, which is why states and localities have developed
their own funding sources and why advocacy for the National Housing Trust Fund continues
to be important. But slamming a market-based system for operating in a
market-driven way simply doesn’t make sense.

Subsidized housing is a small part of housing for low-income
households overall, but it usually provides higher-quality housing. Edsall singles
out the two largest and most successful nonprofit community development
intermediaries while ignoring the private, unsubsidized slumlords that own the
vast majority of the housing in areas of concentrated poverty. Some of the most
successful community development investments replace dilapidated, neglected
housing with high-quality housing coupled with social services.

What’s in play, and
what’s at stake
It’s fine for well-intentioned people to speak and write critically about
aspects of the way we make affordable housing happen in this country. In fact,
it’s that critical thinking that will help us improve our work and be of even
greater service to our communities. We need to have this conversation and we
need leading members of the media to bring attention to it in a constructive
and accurate way. But criticism in the absence of other alternatives can come
at a steep price. When the Washington Post published a scathing
but inaccurate series on the HOME program, it gave cover to those in
Congress who were looking to slash housing funding. Four years later, HOME is
at risk of total elimination. It’s low-income families and distressed
communities that will suffer if columns like Edsall’s kick up a groundswell of
support for the idea that nonprofit affordable housing developers are nothing
more than another part of the problem.

The ball is in our
courtIn the end, all of us in the housing community have responsibility for
educating the media, policy makers and other thought leaders about our work to
help people and communities thrive. Affordable housing development and finance
are complicated, and there are many parts of it that operate just like any
other business. But that doesn’t mean we can’t come together as a purpose-driven
movement. This is also why the language we use to describe our work is so
important. We all must tell the affordable housing and community development story,
one that accounts for the environment we work in, the challenges we face and
the mission and passion we bring to the work. By building positive
relationships with local media, being a resource and keeping them informed
about the big picture, we will increase support for our work and help more
people understand why affordable housing is the foundation of success for
people and communities.

About the National Housing Conference

Formed in 1931, the nonprofit National Housing Conference is dedicated to helping ensure safe, decent and affordable housing for all in America. Through nonpartisan advocacy, research and communications for the continuum of housing, NHC develops ideas, resources and policy solutions to move housing forward.